Federal judge rules immediate remedy of shortfall by immigration lottery.
The State Department only gave out 27% of the 55,000 diversity visas that they promised to give out via lottery by the end of the fiscal year. On Friday, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta ordered that the State Department set aside 7,000 visas to be handed out immediately to try to make up the shortfall.
“Some of that shortfall is no doubt due to the difficulties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the pandemic is not the primary culprit,” Judge Mehta wrote in a ruling last week. “That would be the State Department’s complete cessation of adjudicating diversity visa applications for five months and its unlawful deprioritizing of those applications when adjudications resumed.”
As the Lord Leads, Pray with Us…
- For the State Department as they hold the visa lottery.
- For wisdom for Judge Mehta as he hears and rules on federal cases.
- For members of Congress as they consider the need for immigration reform.
Sources: AP, Reuters
